


Catching Stars

by Shinocchi



Series: Same Heart; Different Universe [4]
Category: DRAMAtical Murder - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Celebrity, Alternate Universe - Idols, Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Bathroom Sex, Birthday, Birthday Sex, Come Swallowing, M/M, Oral Sex, Orgasm Delay/Denial, Semi-Public Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-25
Updated: 2016-05-13
Packaged: 2018-03-25 15:39:01
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 12,432
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3815839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shinocchi/pseuds/Shinocchi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Noiz and Aoba are two of the most prominent celebrities in town; their fame overwhelming, their reputation unshaken.</p><p>But they have one secret - no one knows that they're dating each other. And when they sneak out to celebrate Aoba's birthday, they're placed under the risk of being discovered. </p><p>[Celebrity AU]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Aoba's birthday! This was an idea that struck me not long ago, I wanted to put Noiz and Aoba in stylish fashion but at the end of the day it's more like "shirt is nice, but skin is nicer", which is basically my motto for writing this story.
> 
> I might be too invested.
> 
> Self beta'd, mistakes are all mine.
> 
> [Second Chance](http://archiveofourown.org/works/2439038) reference used c:

 

> _Noiz touched unhurriedly, finger tracing along the outline of Aoba’s naked torso, along his waist, then along the frame of his huge white wings before he leaned downwards, giving the sleeping angel a soft peck on the cheek, waking him up at the same time._
> 
> _“Sorry, woke you up?”_
> 
> _Aoba opened his eyes, half-lidded, before he sat up, rubbing his eye with a hand and giving Noiz a sleepy look._
> 
> _“Did I pass out?”_
> 
> _“You did,” Noiz replied nonchalantly. Gently caressing Aoba on the cheek, he planted another kiss on his face, giving him a smile before he said. “Are you feeling okay?”_
> 
> _“I’m fine,” Aoba said, reaching out to put his face on Noiz’s face as he returned his smile with a affectionate one of his own. Then, before Noiz could continue with what he intended to say, a pout was added onto Aoba’s face. “If I’m not, you’d have to take responsibility of it then.”_
> 
> _Noiz gave out a small chuckle. Pulling Aoba into his arms, he patted him on the head with one hand, another stroking on one of the feathers he could reach on Aoba’s wing._
> 
> _“Of course.”_

 

“Annnnnd cut!”

For a while, Noiz continued hugging Aoba, obviously ignoring the cue his director had just given them until Aoba pushed on his chest. Recognizing the signal, he looked down, just in time to catch Aoba looking up at him, pouting with a frown in between his eyebrows.

“You can let me go now, you know…” he said.

“Oh, it’s done already?” Noiz teased. Giving Aoba a final stroke on the back, he released him, the initial smile on his face gradually turned into a playful smirk. “I wanted to hug you forever, if I can.”

It took one warning stare from Aoba to shut him up. Then, Aoba struggled out of the sheets, walked towards the production team while Noiz twiddled with the white feathers that were used as props on the bed.

“Good job, Aoba-san! Noiz-san!” Clear complimented. “I almost refrained myself from stopping you.”

“You shouldn’t then,” Noiz mumbled under his breath. Sighing, he stood up from the bed, making his way towards Aoba, who was struggling to take the wings that were his props off his body.

“This is quite heavy,” he said, managed to take off one part of the wings.

“Let me help you,” his manager, Ren, immediately offered to help upon noticing his struggle.

“Thanks, Ren.”

With Ren’s help, he successfully took the pair of wings off, then throwing himself into a nearby chair, all prepared to hibernate before his next scene started.

“Do you need help with this?”

Noiz’s attention was on Aoba before he was distracted by his manager, Koujaku, who was standing behind him and pointing at his wings.

“Aren’t these heavy?” he asked again, assuming that Noiz hadn’t heard him the first time.

Noiz hummed. Allowing Koujaku to detach the wings from his back, he returned his attention to Aoba, who now had his eyes closed while Ren fanned him with a paper fan by his side.

“Still stuck in the scene?” Koujaku teased, taking the wings off his back and handing it over to an assistant.

Noiz smirked.

“Forbidden love, huh?”

“Imagine the public’s response if they are to find out that both of you are actually going out, though,” Koujaku continued in a half-joking manner. “They would go crazy.”

Thanks to the reputation they had to uphold, along with their company’s policies and plans both of them had to follow, Noiz and Aoba had to watch their steps even when they were in the studio. Being two of the most prominent celebrities in a national range, every one of their movements were being watched; and one wrong step, one accidental behavior would only feed delicious news to the media, which was the last thing they ever needed on top of their hectic work schedule.

“How long more do I have until the next scene?” Noiz asked, putting on a light gray, V-necked shirt and walked to sit beside Aoba.

“Half an hour to go,” Koujaku said, checking on the schedule on his phone. “Do you want something to eat?”

“I’m fine,” Noiz answered with a disinterested tone. “I only need to rest for a bit.”

“Okay then.”

When Koujaku moved away to attend to the producer, a tall, burly guy named Mink, Noiz casted a sideway glance at Aoba, but his barely noticeable effort was only rewarded with Aoba’s insensible response as he closed his eyes, completely unaware that Noiz had been trying to catch his attention.

It was when Noiz finally reached his limits and nudged Aoba on the elbow that Aoba jumped a little, turning around to look at Noiz at long last.

“What?” Aoba asked, putting on a suspicious stare.

Noiz nodded at Ren, who was checking on Aoba’s water supply. Getting the hint, Aoba coughed softly, attracting Ren’s attention.

“Ren, I’m a bit hungry. Do you think you can find something to eat around here?”

Ren put the water bottle down, nodding before he responded.

“I’ll look around.”

As soon as Ren was out of earshot, Aoba turned back to Noiz.

“What?” he whispered, an unnecessary act which drew a smile out of Noiz, noticing how insensible Aoba could be sometimes.

“Do you want to sneak out?”

“H-huh?!” Aoba shouted under his breath. “We still have two scenes to go!”

“I know,” Noiz responded. “But I also know that it’s your birthday today.”

When Aoba’s eyes brightened, Noiz’s smile widened. Seriously, Aoba _always_ managed to present such innocently endearing reaction that Noiz couldn’t help but feel a tight wrap around his chest.

“You don’t think I’ve forgotten about it, don’t you?” he smirked.

“N-no… I mean,” Aoba looked away, a pink flush appearing on his face. “I forgot about it myself.”

The last of his words were barely audible but the squeeze in Noiz’s heart was too obvious to miss.

“I want to spend the day with you,” Noiz admitted. “There’s no way we can do it looking at our full-day schedule. But,” he paused, gauging Aoba’s reaction. “If we sneak out now, we’ll manage.”

“But..”

Aoba returned his gaze to the set – Clear was checking out the shots they’d just taken, Koujaku was in a deep conversation with Mink, and Ren was nowhere to be seen. Everyone seemed to be busying themselves with their own tasks; no one was giving Noiz and Aoba any attention.

Besides, it had been a while since they spent alone time together, their future schedules didn’t seem like they were allowed to take any day off either.

He looked at Noiz again, who had his gaze on Aoba the entire time before he threw one last look at the set, turned back to Noiz again, and nodded.

“Let’s go,” he said, immediately responded by Noiz’s pleased smile.

They took a cautious look around their surrounding before they stood up from their seats and walking as quietly as they could towards the changing room.

 

It was half an hour later that they found themselves in the lobby of their production studio – Aoba wore a sleeveless shirt, a light purple scarf wrapping his neck with a pair of tight, slimmed cut jeans and knee-length black leather boots. He was also wearing a cap on top of his high ponytail, keeping his head low as he headed out of the building first, then leaning against a pillar and peeking into the lobby while he waited for Noiz. Noiz took his time to walk out of the elevator. With an inner shirt that was lime green in color, he also had a thick, furry coat over him, hood up with a pair of long, tight jeans and sleek, polished pair of black shoes to complete the sophisticated look. He looked around, saw Aoba making a thumbs-up sign at him from behind the pillar, and put his shades on, sticking his hands into his coat pockets and paced quickly to where Aoba was waiting for him.

“Seems like we’re clear,” Aoba said, glancing around to check the coast before he looked at Noiz.

“Seems like it,” Noiz confirmed. Then, he pulled his shades slightly down, revealing half of his lime green orbs. “Ready?”

Aoba gulped. They hadn’t done this before and even though Aoba felt guilty for abandoning his responsibilities, he had to admit that he was pretty excited for the idea. Noiz seemed to be sharing his thoughts as well because Aoba could clearly feel the quiver when Noiz took his hand in his. While Aoba tried to keep his head low, under the shade of the cap, Noiz kept his head up, leading the way. His face might be less recognizable with eyes hidden behind his shades and head hidden in the shield of his hood but no matter how Aoba looked at him, he was way too outstanding that even hiding partial of his appearance did nothing to deceive his natural charisma.

“Noiz,” Aoba called out. Even without the need for Noiz to respond, Aoba knew that he was listening, so, giving the surrounding a final look, he whispered. “We’re too eye-catching, you especially.”

“I thought it’s you,” Noiz replied before he flashed a grin at Aoba’s direction. “Look over there.” Following the direction Noiz pointed his chin at, Aoba caught sight of two young girls whispering and pointing at him. “They’re probably wondering if you’re who they think you are.”

He took back his words. Being an idol for more than three years had trained him into becoming a person he once thought he would never be. He could often feel eyes on him, and when he gave out a bright, natural smile, he could always hear a gasp, or more shrieks that still made him feel awkward up to this date. Noiz had more experience than him; he’d been in the industry since he was barely ten years old. The overpowering aura whenever he appeared never failed to change the atmosphere they were in even without the need for him to try too hard. He was simply a natural in it. The first time Aoba met him was the first time he’d properly understand the meaning of being star-struck. He’d seen Noiz in advertisements, regardless of stills – billboards, magazines – and in movies, on the television. Noiz was young, and he definitely held great potential in his career; his fame was incredible, his reputation unshaken, and sometimes, Aoba couldn’t help but feel that he would be a hindrance to Noiz’s career path, which was the last thing he ever wanted.

Being Noiz’s boyfriend – even though in secret – still felt surreal to him; he remembered when he realized that he’d developed feelings towards his co-star when they first worked together, he’d tried very hard to suppress them, telling himself that it was nothing more than a crush and it’d disappear before he knew it. But the feeling remained and before he could make a decision to face it, Noiz confession brought his contradictions to an end.

“Says the famous one,” Aoba teased before he quickly lowered his head again, noticing that he’d attracted the attention of another high school girl. “But really, we can’t stay out for too long. Do you have a plan?”

He could make out Noiz’s confident smirk even when half of his face was hidden behind the hood.

“Of course,” he heard Noiz said. “I’ve booked a table for dinner tonight but I want to try other things before that.”

“Other things?” Aoba asked as they turned a corner and walked into an alley, which was, fortunately, less congested than the main road.

“I did some research earlier and found a nice café around here,” Noiz explained, eyes darting from one shop to the other in search of the said café.

This café Noiz was talking about must be something special, Aoba concluded. Thanks to Noiz constant disinterested impression that had now become a trademark of his, he was labeled as the “Cold Prince” by the media, which had quickly spread and eventually, became Noiz’s personal definition. His first encounter with Noiz wasn’t too pleasant either. His emotionless aura created a hard-to-approach impression, causing Aoba to stay a distance with him, fearing that he might accidentally annoy him. Their first roles were a pair of enemies who eventually fell in love with each other throughout the story. Noiz pulled his role off perfectly as expected. But Aoba was just starting his career at that time and he had to take twice the effort to pull off his own role. He thought that it was natural to be facing challenges when he’d first started; even with Ren by his side and Koujaku helping to smooth things out between him and everyone else, there were still things that he needed to learn by himself.

But he didn’t know Noiz had his eyes on him the entire time, only made it obvious when Noiz lent him a hand when they were on break after a miserable failure one day. Noiz had approached him then, telling him that he could help him out with one condition. Aoba was shocked and excited at the same time. He’d been facing heavy pressure since he was assigned to the role, his opponent being Noiz not helping the slightest. But when Noiz approached him, for some reason, he felt the weight lifted off his chest. He took Noiz’s hand, thanked him, and before he knew it, they were spending long hours together, discuss about the scripts, practicing their roles until late night in the studio. And finally, when it came to the end of the shoot, they had both developed a kind of affection towards each other that they never knew was possible.

He thought Noiz’s condition would be something way too overwhelming for him to handle. But surprisingly, when Noiz spilled the beans at him, it was surprisingly… _normal_.

 

> _“I want to try things in town. Can you guide me?_ ”

So that was how it as. Before they knew it, they had started going out in secret. They never told anyone about their relationship. It’d be easier if they were just two normal persons on the street. No one would care.

But being in this industry placed them in a tricky position. They were both blooming stars; every one of their movements would trigger conversation. Deep inside, Aoba knew that their fans wouldn’t mind, the media would be delighted; but he also knew that announcing their relationship meant affecting not only his future route, but Noiz’s as well.

So he decided to keep it as a secret, although Noiz did not agree to the idea.

 

> _“It doesn’t matter,” Noiz once said. “Building a career is a flexible option. I can restart it if things go wrong.”_

Aoba told him that his current position presented him with a lot of opportunities. If he hadn’t insisted, he was sure that Noiz would come out to the public in the next hour.

It surprised Aoba how persistent Noiz could be; it contradicted his first impression towards Noiz.

But it gave him a sense of assurance, of relieve.

There were a lot of things he had yet to know about Noiz, and Noiz was developing great interest to know more about him. They still had a long way to go.

“Found it,” Noiz suddenly said. Leading the way, Noiz brought Aoba to a traditionally-designed café. The exterior of the building was painted in glossy brown, wooden-like material, with a few pots of flowers hanging along the roof. Most of the customers were seated outside, a lot of them were either high school kids or retired businessmen who intended to spend their afternoon in the most relaxed way possible.

“Let’s go inside, we don’t want to be caught sitting out in the open,” Noiz suggested.

A small chime rang when they walked into the shop, accompanied by a bright “Welcome!”. The shop’s interior was cozy, dimmed and a soft, calming melody floated through the space, the smell of coffee giving them a pleasant mood the moment they set foot into it. Finding a seat by the window, Noiz pulled his hood down, took his shades off and opened the menu on the table.

“I heard they have excellent parfait here,” he said, eyes scanning through the menu before he stopped on one corner of the page.

“Parfait?” Aoba repeated, then looking over to check out the items Noiz were staring at.

“There are so many choices,” Noiz mumbled.

“Hey, hey, don’t,” Aoba strained. “Don’t you _ever_ think about ordering all of them.”

Noiz looked up, quirking an amused eyebrow.

“Seems like you’re starting to know me better now,” he teased.

“It’s not hard to figure you out, brat,” Aoba pouted. “There’s only the two of us. We won’t be able to finish everything.”

“Hmmm,” Noiz considered. “Shall we take this” - He pointed at ‘ _vanilla bean_ ’ – “and this?”

It didn’t matter to Aoba whichever Noiz was to choose as he nodded at the “ _ballard bee honey_ ” Noiz was pointing at. Satisfied with their selection, Noiz beckoned the waiter over, made their orders, and crossed his fingers, supporting his chin with his hand.

“Wh-what?” Aoba asked, noticing that Noiz had been giving him an unblinking stare ever since the waiter was out of eyeshot.

“Nothing, just relieved that we get to spend time alone today.”

Sure, Aoba had said that Noiz was easy to read, but sometimes, he begged to differ. Because he’d never be able to predict when Noiz would blurt out such upfront yet genuine words like these at him.

“I… Well, I guess it’s fine to do this once in a while?” he said.

“’Once in a while’?” Noiz repeated, now wearing a bemused look on his face. “I thought this would be the one and only time.”

“E-eh..”

“But if you like, I don’t mind doing this _once in a while_ as well,” Noiz continued, the more than familiar smirk returning to his feature.

“No, it’s fine. Forget about what I said,” Aoba pouted with a frown, looking away and averting eye contact with Noiz.

It was too late. Judging on the expression Noiz was wearing on his face, Aoba was sure that he’d taken mental note to grasp more of this similar chance to sneak out with Aoba again.

The parfaits were extremely satisfying. Noiz’s first comment of “ _sweet_ ” had Aoba laughing at him, telling him that he was still a brat after all while he indulged in his own dessert.

“Brat, brat,” Aoba continued teasing. He couldn’t help it. He thought of Noiz’s public image and it struck him on how he was the only person to be able to witness this side of Noiz – the most genuine Noiz who was the closest to his age.

He knew Noiz was pouting at him, another one of his gestures that was never made known to the public. Then, Noiz stood up, urging Aoba to look at him before he felt a warm, wet sensation on his cheek.

“You’ve got cream here,” Noiz said, his face still extremely close. Aoba froze. Noiz’s penetrating gaze was merely inches away from him, and he could still feel the lingering wetness on his face where Noiz had licked him.

“Y-you…”

Noiz purposely licked his lips, a strong mocking intention and Aoba didn’t need a mirror to know how red he was, he could physically feel the heat on his face and Noiz’s attractive grin did nothing but further intensified the embarrassment in him.

“Wh-what are you doing?! We’re in publ—mph!”

He was forced to swallow the remaining of his words down when Noiz lurched forward, catching him in a breathless kiss.

Aoba wanted to push him away but Noiz was too good a kisser himself; or rather, he was too skilled with handling Aoba that Aoba felt himself going limp as soon as Noiz slipped his tongue beyond his lips.

“I’m not done with you yet,” Noiz said after a whole minute of kissing. He sat back down and called for the bill, leaving Aoba to calm his enraging nerves down while he waited.

“Let’s go,” Noiz urged. He pulled his hood up and put his shades back. As he stood up, he extended a hand, signaling Aoba to take it.

When Aoba first knew Noiz, he’d had gotten the impression that Noiz’s pace was too fast for him to catch up. Now that he’d managed to know him a bit better, his perception remained. While he needed more time to make sense of things that were happening around him, Noiz had moved on, carrying out his next plan, an obvious move that told Aoba that he wasn’t planning to waste more time.

Most of the time, Aoba found himself falling into Noiz’s flow. And before he knew it, he was walking alongside Noiz, joining him in all the plans he’d plotted out. Noiz seemed to have noticed it as well. Because when Aoba responded to him, he could feel him stagger, but before Noiz could feel bad for pulling him into this flow he’d created, Aoba had picked himself up, walking with him on the same level and impressing Noiz at the same time.

There was something about Aoba that had triggered that small light of hope in him. Aoba wasn’t very good with words himself but that didn’t matter, because Aoba was good with _actions_ , and that alone surpassed everything words could do.

They spent the rest of the day strolling around town. At first, they still kept their eyes around, being extremely cautious towards any sign of paparazzi that might be lurking around for fresh news. But after experiencing clear coast for a long time, they slowly dropped their guard, and instead, started to try almost every street stall they passed by openly, constantly found themselves being amused with the simplest thing ever. Eventually, when they were too full for more food, they proceeded to window shopping instead.

It was indeed something they hadn’t gotten a lot of chance to do together. Even though they practically got to meet each other for the most times thanks to their new project together, it was a whole new experience altogether to be able to indulge in something so… _normal_. For others, it was probably something that they did every day. But for them, it was something distant, almost like a faraway wish. They couldn’t go out without being flashed by camera lights, being surrounded by fans to the extent that it became too hard to move; and they couldn’t leave a building without being escorted by at least three other men.

Gaining fame had its cost – the cost of their freedom.

Even their wardrobe was custom-made, there wasn’t a need for them to shop for their own clothes. Hence, when Noiz saw the excited look on Aoba’s face when he stared at the row of jackets in one of the fashion shops downtown, he couldn’t help but feel grateful for the decision he’d made, even though he wasn’t even sure about it at first.

“Noiz, look!” Aoba said, holding up a white-colored jacket with blue linings. “Do you think this would look good on me?”

Noiz gave the piece of clothing a quick scan before he responded,

“There’s only one way to find out,” Then, taking the jacket off Aoba’s hand, he nodded, hinting Aoba to turn around before he helped wearing it for him.

“Hmm…” Aoba hummed, observing his own reflection in the mirror and turning around multiple times.

“It looks good on you,” Noiz complimented. “Buy it.”

“But would I have the chance to wear, though,” Aoba considered, slipping his hands into the pockets of the jacket before he turned around to look at Noiz. “I mean, if I’m not going to wear it, it’d be a waste to buy it.”

“You can wear it when we come out for dates again,” Noiz suggested, already taking his wallet out.

“Wait, wait! I can—hey!” Before Aoba could struggle out of the jacket, Noiz had made his way towards the counter, where he pointed at Aoba and pulled out a couple of notes from his wallet.

“That brat,” Aoba smiled bitterly. He wasn’t going to stop him. He’d known Noiz well enough to know that anything he said wouldn’t be able to change Noiz’s intention anyway. So when they walked into the next shop, he looked around, smiling brightly when he discovered what he was looking for as he pulled Noiz by the wrist, directing him to his target.

“Here you go!” Aoba said happily, pulling Noiz’s hood off and putting on a green-colored beanie on him. “Hm, hm, you look more like your age now,” he nodded approvingly.

Noiz scowled. Catching sight of himself in the mirror, his frown deepened as he scrutinized his own reflection.

“This is very different from my image,” he commented, playing with the two dangling fur balls from the beanie.

“Exactly,” Aoba patted him on the shoulder. “Isn’t it nice to see yourself differently for once?”

Truth was, it was _Aoba_ who wanted to see this different image of his. Satisfied with his own rebranding attempt, he was about to pull his wallet out when one of the lady staff came up to them.

“Excuse me,” she said, voice timid. “Do you happen to be Noiz and Aoba?”

“O-oh…”

This was the end. They’d dropped their guards. In any second now, they’d be surrounded by fans and they’d have no choice but to return to the studio.

Noiz sighed. Taking the shades off, he faced the woman.

“Yeah,” he said calmly. It often surprised Aoba how he could switch from a nineteen-year-old kid to his public persona in seconds while he struggled to present himself in a more idol way.

“Oh,” For a while, the woman merely stared, as if trying to digest the situation before she gave out a perky smile. “I thought you look familiar but I never thought that it would _really_ be the both of you! By the way,” she said when Noiz turned to face the mirror, seemingly considering if he should take the beanie off now that they were discovered. “It looks good on you. Maybe you can try on this image next.”

Aoba almost had to cover his mouth to stop himself from laughing out loud. Stifling a grin, he patted Noiz on the head instead, whom a barely visible blush had made its way on his face as Aoba nodded frantically at the lady.

“You think so too, huh?” he said happily. “I can suggest this to Koujaku and see what he has to say.”

Noiz sent him a glare, but Aoba was already talking to the woman, who insisted to have the item on the house as a courtesy of their visit.

 

The sun was already sinking behind the horizon when they walked out of the shop, its ray of light glimmering in the darkness of the clouds. After taking a quick look on his watch, Noiz said,

“We should head to the restaurant now, it doesn’t accept late turn-ups.”

Aoba didn’t know what to expect, but he knew all too well that he was in safe hands now as he allowed Noiz to led him down the road, hand-in-hand, while still keeping their heads low. As they kept to themselves, Aoba couldn’t help but feel bad for him. He knew that Noiz respected him and had dropped the intention for them to come out clean to the public but he had to admit that sometimes, he thought that perhaps admitting it out loud would be a better initiative instead. His main problem now was that he didn’t know how to tell Noiz exactly that when he’d been so stubborn over his decision when Noiz had first suggested it.

He felt like thrusting his head into a wall right now.

Feeling the tension, Noiz nudged him on his palm.

“You still doing good?” he asked.

Aoba nodded. “Don’t worry about me. This is nothing.”

He saw Noiz smile when he looked away. He had never known how Noiz thought about him. But his confession caught him off guard when he told him how his aggressiveness had proposed a whole new worldview to him, apparently a perspective he’d never considered before.

 _“You’re different. You cared._ ”

Noiz had told him. And it hurt him.

Being popular had its not-so-pleasant consequences – it was a world of loneliness; a world where people were contented with how one presented themselves instead of how they truly were. And it was worse for Noiz because he’d been exposed to this kind of life ever since he was young, when he hadn’t gotten the chance to know the world too well, let alone knowing the people around him.

Noiz had yet to learn about finding happiness in the simplest things, he had been surrounded by extravagance for the most time; he had still yet to know that wealth wasn’t the definition of happiness.

Hence, when they stopped in front of a castle-like restaurant, Aoba dropped his jaw, almost wanting to smack himself in the forehead before Noiz pressed him to follow him in.

“Seriously… I would be happy even if we’re to sit by the roadside…” he nagged.

“But that wouldn’t be a birthday celebration anymore,” Noiz justified. “And besides, it’d increase the chance for us to be discovered.”

He got a point there.

“But still, this is too much.”

Feeling extremely pampered, Aoba could only follow Noiz in where he spoke to the receptionist, who gave him a warm smile before she guided them into another room.

“Wait, this is not a restaurant?” Aoba asked, observing every corner of the building. From the outside, it looked perfectly like any other luxurious restaurants in the city. But the further they walked in, the more Aoba realized that it looked more than just another restaurant. It had a lobby of its own, and he even managed to catch a glimpse of room numbers after they took an escalator up and walked past a few corridors.

“This restaurant uses a hotel concept. People usually come here to feed themselves and spend the night here if they eat too late into the night,” Noiz explained.

“I hope that’s not your intention. We still need to go back after dinner,” Aoba said, suspicions in his tone.

Noiz smirked. “Just in case.”

After strolling through a few red-carpeted corridors, they found themselves in a high-class room, walls painted in red with a few chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The seats and the tables were covered with velvet cloths, and there was a candelabrum on each table, decorated with a small pot of selective flowers.

“Are you fine with Western?” Noiz asked, nodding at the waiter and pulling the chair back for Aoba to sit before he went to sit opposite him.

“I’m fine with anything, I told you,” Aoba insisted. But upon seeing Noiz’s indifferent expression, he quickly clarified. “I’m very happy you’re doing this for me, Noiz. Really.”

Noiz’s smile told him that that was what he wanted to hear. Leaving the meal decision to Noiz, Aoba took his cap off and looked around instead. A pianist played in a far corner, couples and families indulged in their meals while they interacted happily. He even spotted a few tables of businessmen who were obviously here for serious discussion. He’d never known about this place before, not like he had the time to research about it himself. Most of his – and Noiz’s – meals were pre-prepared, and there were only rare occasions when Aoba found time to go home for dinner with his brother and his grandmother.

He still remembered how he struggled to make this decision when he was informed that he was selected to be part of a blockbuster movie, he’d gone for the audition out of a desperate need to cover the overwhelming expenses his family had to face after he’d lost his last job. His family left the decision to him. His brother, Sei, sat with him in the room for long hours, talked to him about his decision and gave him advice where appropriate.

 _“Follow your heart._ ” was what he said. And before Aoba knew it, he took the offer, found himself staring dumbfounded at Noiz when he first set foot into the studio and then, before he could blink, here he was, with Noiz – his _boyfriend_ \- in a high-class restaurant celebrating _his_ birthday.

“Honestly, I’d be more than happy if we could spend our day in a simpler way,” Aoba confessed. “I’m still overwhelmed by this... lifestyle and I know that you are too.”

Noiz passed the menu to the waiter before he turned to properly address Aoba.

“I thought so too. But it’s the first birthday I’m spending with you. I want to give you only the best.”

Aoba smiled in appreciation, then reaching out to grasp on Noiz’s hand.

“It’s already more than enough to have you here with me. For your information, it still feels very bizarre for me to sit with you here, just like this,” Then, he looked around, smiling at the atmosphere Noiz had brought him into. “I know you don’t mind spending on me, I know you’d do anything. I’m the same. Next time,” he leaned forward to give Noiz a mischievous smirk. “On _your_ birthday, we’ll explore the street foods, okay?”

Noiz turned his hand over and intertwined their fingers together before he brought it up to his lips, kissing every one of his fingers before he pressed his lips against the back of Aoba’s hand.

“Anywhere is fine, as long as it’s with you.”

Aoba could feel the heat at the tips of his ears. Noiz’s kiss lingered on his hand for another one whole minute before he brought his palm to press against his face.

“You’ve got _no idea_ how much I want you,” Noiz admitted, his gaze searing right into Aoba’s. “You were very seductive when you were topless just now, with that white wings of yours, and your pale skin…” he trailed off at the end of his sentence, and Aoba had to gulp down his throat when he noticed that Noiz had moved his stare down to his neck.

“It’s been a while since we’ve done it, no?” Noiz asked, moving his eyes back to Aoba’s. “And you’re seducing me every day, just like that.”

“I can’t help it,” Aoba pouted, face red. “Our roles are as such.”

“The last I remember, your role is not to seduce me but to—“

“—distract you,” Aoba continued for him. “It’s the same.”

“So you’re telling me you’re fine with that?” Noiz narrowed his eyes. Before Aoba could answer, he hold his hand with both of his, now kissing the palm. “Regardless of your role, you’re a natural seducer anyway.”

Then, he seized Aoba’s wrist lightly, pulling him over and Aoba had to stand up slightly to meet Noiz’s lips.

“Don’t do that to anyone else, okay?” Noiz smirked after a quick lick on Aoba’s lips.

“O-only you would take it that way,” Aoba mumbled with a scowl on his face. Struggling out of Noiz’s grasp, he sat back down, keeping his head low, too embarrassed to see Noiz in the eyes.

“Keep it that way.”

Their interaction was quickly interrupted when the waiter came with their appetizer – bakery fire roasted tomato soup – and while Aoba spent most of his time indulging in his food, Noiz fixed his gaze on him, his attention so sharp that Aoba had to look up and gave him a pouted “what?”

“Nothing. Just wondering how this soup complements so well with your face.”

Aoba almost spilled the most of his soup. When he fired a glare at Noiz’s decision, Noiz had decided to give his soup a well-deserved attention.

Their main course came not long after but for some reason, Noiz didn’t seem like he was enjoying his meal; instead, he was constantly deep in his own thoughts, only until the final of their meal that he focused his attention on Aoba, giving out a small laugh when he noticed the cream by Aoba’s lips.

“And you called yourself my big brother,” Noiz teased, wiping the cream off for Aoba with a white handkerchief.

“Shut up. And what’s wrong with you?” Aoba asked, attempting to regain his position. “You don’t like the food?”

“Not really,” Noiz replied, but Aoba’s question obviously caught him off guard when he looked away almost immediately, telling Aoba just enough that he was _indeed_ hiding something from him.

“You better not have more things up your sleeve,” Aoba warned. “Whatever you have done are more than enough for me. It’s _really_ enough,” he emphasized.

That was when Noiz gave him a suggestive side-way stare; then, before Aoba could figure out what he was trying to imply, the lights dimmed, the clatters around them suddenly calmed down and the sound of piano playing was suddenly louder than Aoba remembered it to be.

“Noiz, what is—“

While Aoba was looking around curiously, Noiz was already standing up, a bouquet of roses in his hand as he made his way towards Aoba, who was gaping at him.

“You were saying about doing too much,” Noiz said, in the slowest yet clearest way possible. It wasn’t a tone Aoba was used to hearing but now all he could hear was Noiz’s voice, nothing else. “But I’ve never felt like I’ve done enough for you.”

“That’s not true,” Aoba was quick to respond despite being dumbstruck. “I told you, it still feels unbelievable for me to be by your side. You were once very distant from me, I still cannot believe…”

It was hard to describe how he actually felt towards Noiz. There were a lot of emotions in him, all of them strong and sometimes breathtaking. But he had never once thought that those were what people defined as ‘falling in love’. It took Noiz’s confession, Noiz’s question of if he was willing to accept him that had hit Aoba hard. He _wanted_ to be by his side. He _accepted_ him, but he was surprised to know that Noiz had accepted him even before he realized it himself.

“I wanted to give you a proper title,” Noiz continued, noticing Aoba’s struggle. Then, he pushed the bouquet towards Aoba and when Aoba received it, he put his hand into the pocket of his jeans, pulling out a small velvet box.

“Noiz, wait…” Aoba said, suddenly realizing what this was all about.

“It might be tough,” Noiz admitted. “But it has been tough all this while. If I have to choose between my career and you, it’d always be you.”

Aoba felt a squeeze in his heart. He remembered Noiz telling him the exact same words when Noiz had proposed the idea to announce their relationship to the public. He’d told Noiz that he wanted Noiz to put his career before everything else. He told Noiz that he’d wait for him, no matter how long it’d take.

But he never told Noiz that if Noiz was to insist, he’d accept it without hesitance. Noiz seemed to have seen through him, noticing his own struggle, understanding how too-selfless Aoba could be.

And Noiz seemed to have read his mind as well, realizing how this should be what they should’ve done a long time ago – that eventually, they’d end up in this decision.

“So, Aoba,” Noiz said, his voice just a bit unstable as he opened the velvet box, revealing an expensive-looking ring. While Aoba was still trying to organize his overwhelmed emotions, Noiz kneeled down on one leg, and Aoba swore he almost broke down. “Can you entrust your life to me?”

“Y-you…” Aoba stifled a sob. He wanted to reprimand the brat, he wanted to tell the brat to slow down, to allow him to breathe. He needed the brat to reconsider his decision, that Aoba might not be the best person for him.

But, he also wanted Noiz to tell him that _he_ was enough.

“You’re too much for me,” he said instead. But Noiz’s gaze was so strong that it penetrated heat right through Aoba’s gaze and warmed his entire insides up. Noiz was still waiting for an answer, and with every passing second, Aoba could feel how his emotions lingered between breaking down and staying firm.

“I say the same to you,” Noiz smiled. “ _You_ are too much for me. You cared too much for a person you hardly knew. _You_ were the one who had set this trap.”

Aoba wanted him to stop right there. One more word and he’d lose his composure.

“Take responsibility, will you?”

That was it.

Taking a step forward and ruffle Noiz on the hair, he took the ring off his hand, hugging his head and literally sobbing into his shoulders, joining him to knee on the floor.

“I say the same to you, you damn brat,” he cried.

If Noiz thought he was enough, then he should be. He trusted Noiz, and he trusted himself. He knew that every intention and every gesture he’d presented to Noiz was genuine because like how Noiz had put it, he simply _cared too much_ because Noiz was worth _that_ much. Noiz was thrown into this complicated industry without a clue of the world, and despite trying to understand, his workload had taken a toll on him, stopping him from doing things that were so very normal for everyone but him.

“You’re worth everything, Noiz,” he said, still having difficulties believing that this was happening.

“Do I take it as a yes?” Noiz’s voice rang beside his ear.

“Of course!” Aoba hugged him firmer. “Of course!”

“Tomorrow,” Noiz said after he pulled Aoba out of his embrace to look at him. “I’ll make preparation for the announcement. I’m not going to announce that we’re getting married yet but I’ll tell everyone that we’re together now.” Then, he leaned in to give Aoba a kiss on his cheek. “We might face a lot of issues, politics and whatnot, but I’m more than ready to face them, even if that means putting my reputation at stake. I told you before and I’ll tell you again – if I have to choose between my career and you, I’ll choose the one who’d changed my life for the better and that’s you. Only you.”

Aoba was completely lost for words, before he knew it, his body took over his mind, finding himself launching forward to give Noiz a deep kiss. The clatters around them started to subside, and everything slowly returned to normal after a huge round of applause from the observing crowd. But Noiz and Aoba remained kissing, unwilling to pull themselves off this intense fervor that had suddenly attacked them. They wouldn’t stop even if someone would have discovered that they were the pair of famous celebrities in town; they wouldn’t stop for anyone. There was no need to hide their passion, and they shouldn’t either.

It took a long while for them to separate their kiss, both panting and eyes watery from the sudden hunger. Then, Noiz pulled Aoba over to give Aoba a quick kiss on his forehead before he whispered in his ear,

“I want you now, Aoba.”

“H-huh? But we’re outside.”

“We wouldn’t have time after this,” Noiz said. “Unless you want to spend the night here, then I can hold it in for a little while more.”

“We can’t, we need to return to the studio.”

“Exactly,” Noiz said, kissing Aoba again on the ear. “Just a quick one.”

Noiz knew exactly that Aoba shared the same thought as him, just another prod and he’d let his heart do the talking. It had been a while since they made love, their work schedules had gotten into their way. But now that they had such a sweet opportunity presented to them – albeit short – there was no way they would let it slip just like that.

“A quick one, then,” Aoba finally said.

They made their way out of the room, down the corridor and stopped in front of the male toilet.

The lavatory was high-class, with cold, marble floors and extremely clean toilets. Aoba shivered slightly at the chill in the room, regretting not grabbing a jacket with him when he left. A man was standing in front of the sink when they walked in, causing Noiz to push up his shades and Aoba lowering his head out of reflex. The man smiled at them, dried his hands, and walked out of the room, leaving the both of them alone.

“You sure this is safe?” Aoba asked Noiz, who was checking on each of the cubicles.

“No one’s around.”

“But someone might come in.”

“Not if we do it quickly.”

He sensed the urgency in Noiz’s voice and he wasn’t sure if it was stemmed from Noiz’s self-conscious or from his need for release.

“Come here,” Noiz had entered one of the cubicles, one in a far corner and was beckoning Aoba over with a hand.

Aoba was still hesitant about the idea but when Noiz pushed him gently until his back was against the door and starting to give him feverish kisses along his neck, he suppressed his self-conscious, allowing himself to drown into the passion Noiz was impatiently showering him now.

He nipped at Aoba’s bottom lip, tugging it between his teeth and Aoba clung onto him, trying not to make any sound despite knowing that they had the space to themselves at the moment. Eventually, he pushed his tongue into Aoba’s mouth, swiping over the roof of his mouth before pressing against his tongue. He didn’t need to wait for too long before Noiz was impatiently taking his knee-length boots off, then unbuttoning his jeans and removing it off.

Swiftly placing the clothing on the toilet dispenser, Noiz returned just in time to catch Aoba’s needy gaze on him, telling him that Aoba was just as desperate as him and the next thing Aoba did proved it to him as he pushed him, almost aggressively, until his back hit the cubicle’s door once again.

“Hurry up, Noiz,” Aoba pleaded. As a sign of desperation, he pulled Noiz close, slid his tongue along Noiz’s neck, occasionally grazing his skin with his teeth.

Self-restraint was hard; even harder when he’d never been _feeling_ Aoba for months. When Aoba bit him lightly on the throat, a prickle of desire squeezed his belly, Aoba’s whimper when he brought his hand to pump on his dick not helping in cooling his need down.

“Hold on,” Noiz said, voice low. Breaking out of Aoba’s embrace, he took his coat off, then his shades, placing them neatly on top of Aoba’s trousers before he took a small bottle of lube out of the back pocket of his jeans.

“You’ve got everything prepared,” Aoba managed to throw him a pout despite being clouded by lust.

“I bring it everywhere with me,” Noiz said, covering two of his fingers with the slick material. “In case I end up alone with you in a public toilet like this.”

Aoba didn’t manage to respond before Noiz was pinning him against the door again.

“Lift your leg up,” he requested.

He supported Aoba’s right leg with his free arm, another one inching towards his hole. Then, while he kissed Aoba on the cheek, he slipped one finger in and smirked in satisfaction when Aoba let out a soft moan.

“Okay?” he asked. Aoba nodded; as if trying to respond better, he cupped Noiz’s face, leaning forward to kiss him and putting his weight down on Noiz’s finger, trying to get it in as deep as he could. Noiz obviously gotten the message because in the next second, not only that he started thrusting his finger more aggressively into Aoba, he also started _sucking_ on Aoba’s tongue, numbing his sensations as Aoba moaned right into his mouth.

The coldness of the lube melted into the warmness of Aoba’s passage and when Noiz pushed in a second finger, Aoba’s insides was already more than ready, sucking Noiz’s fingers _tight_ in until they became too hard to move that Noiz figured that it was about time.

Pulling his fingers out, he put Aoba’s leg down, allowing the other to catch his breath while he got rid of his own jeans and piled it neatly on top of their other clothing.

He returned to kiss Aoba again, feeling a shiver traveling down his spine when Aoba pumped his dick languidly, smearing the length with Noiz’s precum before Noiz tugged on his lips, sending him a hint. Nodding, he let go of Noiz’s dick, watched Noiz crouched a little before he was lifted upwards with Noiz holding onto both of his legs.

“Put it in yourself,” Noiz said hotly. Although flustered, Aoba obeyed without hesitance. He reached downwards, trailing his finger across Noiz’s torso along the way until he made contact with Noiz’s dick. A few exasperated strokes later, he grabbed a fistful of his length, guiding it towards his slicked hole and, slowly, pushed it through the rings of muscle.

He’d tried very hard to contain his moans, but it wasn’t possible. Noiz’s dick was hard and hot. When his head made its way into him, he stopped, panting heavily while Noiz licked the sweat off his neck.

“Slowly, take your time,” Noiz mumbled against his skin, which did nothing but intensified the want in him. “There’s no one around. Let me hear your voice.”

There was something about doing it in public, with the possibility of being caught that burned his nerves. He wanted Noiz deep in him already, but forcing it in would cause pain and that was the last thing he wanted now that they finally had some intimate time together.

Noiz was already halfway in when Aoba took his hand off his dick, his own dick already slicked with his own precum between their bodies, and clung onto Noiz’s shoulders.

“Need some help?” Noiz asked, instantly responded by Aoba’s frantic nods. The next thing that happened literally made him see stars in his head.

Noiz had thrust _hard_ into him, reaching deep inside him with one push, earning a loud moan out of Aoba effortlessly.

“There you go,” Noiz smirked, feeling Aoba clawing at his back.

He thrust again, a short but sharp one, and Aoba threw his head back, knocking it against the door, tremors running through him with every inch Noiz gave him.

“I’m starting to believe that you hadn’t been touching yourself since the last time we did this,” Noiz panted, pulling the whole of his dick out before he pushed in again with one push. “You’re sucking me in so tightly it’s hard to even move.”

Aoba was telling him the truth; but he hadn’t expected his body to respond in such a desperate way either. He felt as if he had lost control of his body, and that the blood in him ran purely on _desire_. Noiz pulled slowly out then back in again, rocking his hips carefully and observing every one of Aoba’s responses. Aoba was completely flustered, his nostrils flare with each breath he took. He was already sweating heavily, his hair flat and damp against his forehead and a few strands of hair escaped his ponytail, creating a messy sight.

His breath became heavier with every thrust Noiz gave him. And as Noiz picked up pace, his breath hitched. Scrambling for support, he encircled his legs around Noiz’s body, pulling him closer in the process.

“I wonder what would people say if they are to see you like this?” Noiz was still wearing the smirk Aoba was more than familiar with. But this time, it did nothing but heightened the pleasure in Aoba, his head filled with images of them being caught red-handed when he had Noiz’s dick buried deep inside him; when flashlights captured every one of their actions and when he was put under _so many eyes_ in this state. He gave him shivers.

“You felt it?” Noiz mumbled. “Your inside just clenched.”

He didn’t want to admit it, but his body betrayed him. His body _knew_ what he wanted, and the same can be said to Noiz.

“Shut—“His whimper caught the rest of his sentence as Noiz thrust straight on the right spot.

If Noiz kept this pace, he was sure that he’d reached his climax soon. Noiz didn’t seem like he had the intention to stop either, his rhythm increased, rubbing his insides raw. He could physically feel his orgasm at the tip of his dick, a few more pushes was all Aoba needed to—

The door of the toilet swung open. Both of them froze, Aoba quickly captured Noiz in a sharp stare. His heart beat loudly beneath his chest, he could still feel the pulses of Noiz’s dick buried deep inside him.

And he didn’t want to imagine what would appear on the newspaper’s headlines tomorrow.

Noiz’s hands were numb from holding Aoba’s weight. The footsteps inched closer and he had to look at Aoba to remember how to breathe. He didn’t remember his arms to ache so much. Realizing it, Aoba clenched tighter around his dick, almost eliciting a moan out of Noiz before he placed a hand over Noiz’s mouth, suppressing the sound.

“Have you seen the promotional video?”

“You mean the upcoming movie by Noiz and Aoba?”

Now _both of them_ needed to remind each other to breathe.

“It’s nice to see them working with each other again. They have great chemistry.”

“You think so too?”

“Of course.”

The corners of Noiz’s lips curled up. Catching the sign, Aoba shot him a glare, shaking his head and narrowing his eyes. He knew the look all too well but he was far too late to stop him. Before he could say anything, Noiz started rocking his hips again, reviving the heat in Aoba as he pushed the back of his hand against his own mouth. The slightest movement painted a piece of white in his mind. His breathing felt heavy and his head was spinning. He was sure he’d passed out then and there if he hadn’t been so cautious about the two men outside their cubicle.

They were literally just _outside_ their door. If Noiz had thrust harder, they’d be sure to notice them.

“Noiz,” Aoba hissed, giving him a warning stare.

“Let’s keep an eye out for the release date then,” one of the men said. The door swung open again and in the next minute, they were returned to their initial silence.

“I don’t mind people finding us out, you know,” Noiz finally spoke. “They would know sooner or later anyway.”

“Not like this!” Aoba growled.

Leaning forward to give Aoba an apologetic kiss, Noiz set a pace again, this time, more brutal and impatient. Judging by the way he was aggressively yet passionately fucking Aoba, he was surprised that the door had yet to crumble under the pressure. Aoba had completely given up the intention to stifle his moans, his voice echoed loudly in the space as he closed his eyes, allowing himself to drown into Noiz’s pace again.

He was so close to completion, but Noiz grasped onto the base of his dick, delaying him.

“Just a bit,” Noiz’s eyes were painted with a layer of lust, his breathing heavy and hot. “You don’t want to dirty your shirt, do you?”

Noiz had a point, but his body had a better idea. Feeling the ache to release, he clenched harder on Noiz’s dick, urging him to reach his climax. And soon enough, Noiz gave him another thrust before he let out a choked moan, pushing himself as deep as he could inside Aoba as his body shuddered through his orgasm.

He took a while to settle the aftershocks down. And once he did, he pulled out of Aoba, carefully supporting Aoba to stand on his feet before he slowly released his grasp on Aoba’s dick. Aoba’s eyes were glistening with want, every ounce of his nerves were screaming at Noiz. He _needed_ Noiz.

“N-Noiz…” he pleaded, both hands grasping onto Noiz’s shoulders.

“Come,” Noiz said before he kneeled on the cold marble floor, kissed the tip of Aoba’s dick, then opening his mouth wide in invitation.

Steadying his hands on Noiz’s shoulders, Aoba inched closer, sliding his dick into Noiz’s mouth, taking his time, until it hit the back of Noiz’s throat. Noiz held onto his waist, an act of encouragement as Aoba started to pull out then push back in, as languidly as he could. Noiz was struggling to breathe and Aoba had to stop occasionally to make sure that he was still doing okay. Whenever he did that, Noiz shot him a curious, watery look, then gave him a nod before Aoba proceeded with his action.

For a long while, they stayed like that – Noiz giving Aoba the control, allowing him to fuck his mouth in the way he preferred best. A few more thrusts later, Aoba let out a strangled cry, and came inside Noiz’s mouth, pouring right down Noiz’s throat.

He waited until the last of his tremor subsided before he pulled his dick out of Noiz’s mouth, quickly grabbing a tissue when he found Noiz wiping the corner of his lips with his thumb, licking away the escaped cum at the same time.

“D-don’t do that!” Aoba shrieked. Quickly wiping the stain off Noiz’s mouth, he smiled shyly, in which Noiz responded with a relieved one of his own before Aoba patted him on the head.

“Thank you.”

 

It was already late night after they got dressed and finally checked their mobile. They didn’t need to look at each other’s faces to know how overwhelming their mailboxes were.

“I… guess we should go back then,” Aoba said with a bitter smile.

It was more than enough. In fact, Noiz had given him a birthday experience that no other experience could replace. He was grateful for it, especially knowing how Noiz intended to lead their future.

Now was the time to return to reality.

As they made their way back to the entrance of the restaurant, they held hands, refusing to let each other go until the very last minute and only release their grip when they opened the door leading to the main street.

The sight in front of them halted their actions.

“Do you have any idea how worried we were?”

Koujaku’s voice rang loud in their ears. They’d been caught red-handed. Ren was standing beside him. Once he saw Aoba, he rushed towards him, checking on him.

“Aoba, are you okay?”

“I’m fine,” Aoba quickly dismissed, the guilt pooling within him once again.

“At least you should have told us if you intend to sneak out,” Koujaku glared at Noiz, who was purposely averting his eyes.

“We’ll do so the next time,” Aoba said.

“W-wait, it’s not like I’m encouraging you to do that.”

“I assume you’re here to get us back to the studio?” Noiz finally spoke up.

Giving out a loud sigh, Koujaku continued,

“One more and you’re done for the day.”

 

When they arrived at the studio, they were surrounded by darkness. Assuming that everyone else were taking a break, both Noiz and Aoba walked into the set first and were about to take their clothing off to change into their costumes before the lights turned on suddenly, then, loud voices echoed around the space.

“Happy Birthday, Aoba!”

Aoba was momentarily shocked. He wasn’t sure what was happening but then everyone was walking towards him – Clear was holding a cake in his hands, followed by Mink and the other production crew. And then, the space was filled with them singing Aoba birthday song. Even after the end of the song, Aoba still remained dumbfounded, unsure of how to respond until Koujaku tapped him on the shoulder.

“Now you know why I’m so pissed with you running away.”

“You… planned this all along?” Aoba asked, still in a state of disbelief.

“Do you really think I’d forget your birthday? We grew up together, Aoba! There’s no way I’d forget. And we thought…” he turned his gaze to look at his team. “Since we can’t let you go off to celebrate it with your family today, maybe we can compensate for it.”

“I…” Aoba was totally lost for words. Staring at the birthday cake now pushed under his nose, he sniffed, taking a deep breath to contain the overpowering emotions within him before he smiled brightly. “Thank you so much!”

While everyone was busy with cutting the cake and attending to Aoba, Noiz stood by the side, all by himself until Koujaku approached him.

“You knew this all along, don’t you?” he asked, joining him to lean on the wall.

Noiz shrugged.

“It’s too obvious to miss. Only _he_ would be too oblivious to not notice it.”

Koujaku gave out a loud laugh.

“Thanks to that, this plan was a success.”

“But that doesn’t stop me from wanting to spend time with him alone first,” Noiz continued, eyes fixed on Aoba all the time.

“Say…” Koujaku started. Sensing the seriousness in his tone, Noiz shifted his attention to Koujaku, who was giving him a suspicious look. “There’s always been something between the two of you. Are you hiding something from me?”

Noiz closed his eyes, the corners of his lips curled up before he stuck his hands into his coat’s pockets.

“Who knows?” he purposely said, feeling Koujaku’s suspicions intensified beside him before he opened his eyes, staring at the floor instead. “You’re right.”

The last of his words were small but Koujaku caught it just in time.

“So it’s not my imagination after all.”

“I’d expect you to know since you’re close to him anyway,” Noiz admitted.

“I wanted either of you to tell me by yourself.”

Noiz turned to look at him, curiosity on his face.

“Are you telling me that you don’t mind?”

“Why would I?” Koujaku grinned. “It’s obvious that both of you click so well with each other. You hadn’t been _this_ expressive ever since he joined us and you’ve been helping him a lot as well, am I right?”

So Koujaku noticed it all along. Now it made Noiz feel bad for keeping it a secret for so long.

“I’m planning to announce it,” Noiz continued, keeping the mood running when it was still hot. “Regardless of what obstacles I’m to face,” he added, assuming that that was what Koujaku would say in the next second.

“Whatever it is,” Koujaku patted him hard on his shoulder. “You’ll have our support.”

Noiz’s eyes brightened in surprise while Koujaku gave out another loud laugh at the sight.

“Well, I’m your manager after all, right? Who wouldn’t support you but your own manager?”

When Noiz broke into a genuine smile, Koujaku knew that it was worth it after all. He’d sensed the tension between him and Aoba since a long time ago; he’d suspected that there was something on between them, because no matter how talented a person was, there was no way one could miss the natural chemistry between them when they were on set. It was as if they were just being themselves – the level of sincerity in their acting was, in fact, _wasn’t_ all act after all.

Beaming, Koujaku gave Noiz another pat on the shoulder before he said,

“But I think it’s just fair to let our own team members know first. What do you think?”

Noiz nodded with a smile.

And when they walked towards the set, towards where everyone was happily celebrating Aoba’s birthday, Koujaku was already thinking about the headlines they’d make after tomorrow.

And all the stories and opportunities that would follow them shortly after.

 

 


	2. Duet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Does being the most famous celebrity in town mean anything to him? he wondered.  
> Or the world meant something else to him?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got hit by a sudden impulse and feelings for this universe so here we are, an update after more than a year _(:3/L

“Beautiful.”

Again.

“Gorgeous.”

Again.

“Splendid.”

Again. And again. And again.

It’d become a daily routine for him. Words that rolled into his ears like flow of water; compliments that sounded as if they were specially crafted just to please him. Even when he was still new in this industry, no one seemed to have enough guts to even raise their voices at him. It must be his impassive expression, or the fact that he could be so blunt to the extent that it could be easily misunderstood as him being constantly snubbed.

Venturing into this industry was a choice he decided out of pure impulse. Being star-hunted wasn’t part of his expectation, especially not when he was simply sitting by the roadside pondering if he should accept the managerial job that’d been just offered to him upon his graduation. Being a businessman sounded wearisome, dull even; hence the reluctance. But this star job fell right under his nose when he was sitting on the fence, giving him an instantaneous push and ultimately earning a nod from him.

He had no idea what he was doing either. The first day he walked into the studio, he was greeted by a man, who gave him a look that spelled of obvious displease before a sigh was release and a pat on the shoulder pushed him into believing that this wasn’t an industry that would allow him to play a fool in. It was perhaps an industry far more treacherous than the initial business world he _almost_ stepped into.

And that was perhaps what enticed him the most – being able to constantly dangle his reputation at the end of the rope, not knowing when the rope would snap and cause him a mortal fall.

“Okay, a break!”

He relaxed his body out of reflex. The bright studio lights were starting to blind him. Lifting a hand to hide his eyes from view, he hastily walked out of the set, finding a chair and immediately collapsed on it.

“Guess who?”

While he was blinded by extreme lights from before, darkness covered his vision, a pair of hands over his eyes as he felt hair as light as feathers brushing through his face.

“Hmmm, a man who’s having a relationship with—“

“Shhh!”

The pair of hands fell straightaway to cover his mouth, stopping him from saying any further. With mild glee, Noiz shot a sideway stare at the intruder, smirking from behind the other’s hand before he gripped the hand on his mouth.

“Didn’t know you’re dropping by,” he said, pulling the man over so that he could come face-to-face with him.

“I thought of giving you a surprise.”

Aoba was as fine as ever. It was obvious that he’d just completed his own photo-shooting session; a purple scarf draped over his neck, he was wearing a long-sleeved, turtle-necked dark blue shirt, alongside a pair of leather jeans with his hair tied up in a ponytail. Seeing the sight, Noiz reached a finger out, twirling the ends of Aoba’s hair and leaning up just enough to give him a quick peck on the cheek.

“You’d probably need to turn me blind to really surprise me. I’d recognize you by your voice anyway.”

“Cheh,” Aoba pouted, tint of flush smeared across his cheeks. “So, are you done here?” he asked, tracing a finger along the silky material of Noiz’s blazer, then stopping at where a red bowtie graced his collar.

“Almost,” Noiz said simply. “What’s your plan?”

“Hmmm… Not as extravagant as the ones you always have.”

“Still doesn’t erase the fact that you came all the way here with the intention to do something with me,” Noiz teased.

Aoba frowned. “Thought of asking you home for dinner.”

“With Tae-san and Sei?”

“Uhuh,” Aoba nodded. “It’s spontaneous, by the way. It’s just that, I haven’t been home for quite some time now and Sei has been asking me to bring you home for… for a long time.”

Noiz quirked an allusive eyebrow, then pulling Aoba over by the waist, causing Aoba to straddle on his laps.

“That’s not _not_ extravagant at all, you know?” he whispered against Aoba’s throat.

“It’s only home-cook meal,” Aoba retorted, attempting to struggle off Noiz’s embrace but to no avail. “Compared to the high-class restaurants _and_ hotels you always bring me to, this is nothing.”

“It’s everything,” Noiz was fast to argue. “I need to prepare myself then.”

“There’s no need for it,” Aoba frowned deeper. “It’s just my family.”

“It’s because it’s _your_ family,” Noiz said, placing his hands on Aoba’s waist and staring up at him. “I need to think about what to wear, you know? Something nice.”

“It’s not like they haven’t been seeing how lavish you could be already,” Aoba mumbled under his breath.

“Hmmmm?”

“Nothing.”

Well, Aoba had a point. Noiz still remembered how both Tae and Sei dropped their jaw when Aoba first introduced him to his family. It was clear that Aoba hadn’t been breaking the news to them about the fact that he was literally dating a _famous celebrity_ that had earned Noiz such a reaction. The whole first encounter was an extremely awkward one, but the ones after that were far more natural – ever since Aoba’s family learned that Noiz was, well, perfectly human as well.

“You might need to wait for a bit more, though,” Noiz said, lifting a quick look at the set. “I have one more shoot to go.”

“No worries,” Aoba grinned. “I’m early anyway.”

Noiz returned his smile and stretched, kissing him tenderly on the lips when they were interrupted by the set assistant.

“Noiz-san, we’re going to—oh, Aoba-san, you’re here too!”

“Yo,” Aoba waved a hand, cumbersomely pulling himself off Noiz.

“Now that I look at it…” the set assistance supported his chin with a hand, scrutinizing both Noiz and Aoba, visibly in deep thoughts.

“W-wait, it was nothing, okay?” Aoba responded frantically. “It was just—“

“You two look really good together,” the assistance said, causing Aoba to swallow his remaining words down his throat.

“H-huh?”

“Hold on a sec.” And without giving Aoba’s curious expression an explanation, the set assistance throttled back to the set, finding a photographer and started talking to him, leaving both Noiz and Aoba to stare at them with mild incredulity.

“Y-you don’t think we’ve been found out…?” Aoba started, cold sweat running down his back. They’d never revealed that they’re dating to anyone besides Aoba’s family. Dating in this industry had always appeared to be a taboo, especially when two prominent figures were dating each other. Being found out now, when they were on the peak of their career, meant putting them in a sticky position and they had both agreed that this wasn’t the best time to be spilling the beans.

Noiz shrugged. “Whatever it is, we’ll see what we can do if it happens.”

“Seriously, you…”

His mind was already running on the treadmill, trying to figure out tons of solutions to solve the problem if they ever ran into one. But before he could come out with one, the man returned to them with a perky grin on his face.

“Aoba-san, if you don’t mind, would you like to join the shoot?”

“What? Me?” Aoba gaped, staring wide-eyed at the man.

“Yeah,” the man nodded.

“But isn’t this a separate paid commercial?” Aoba asked, visibly flabbergasted.

“Indeed, it is,” the man agreed. “But we think it’s worth a try putting both of you together. We’ll sell the idea to the client. If they take it, great. If not… well, we can frame your picture up and display it in our studio,” he ended, laughing at his own joke.

“I don’t think that’s a bad idea after all,” Noiz stood up, slinging an arm around Aoba’s neck, a small smile curved at the corners of his lips.

“Right?” the other man beamed. “What say you, Aoba-san?”

“Erm…” It took a while but Aoba nodded in the end. When he came to think about it, they’d never taken a picture together ever; their situation sticky, it was too challenging a task to even walk with each other in public.

“Okay, we just need to adjust this a bit…” the man then strode towards Noiz, enthusiasm obvious in his gestures, as he started fine-tuning the bowtie on Noiz’s neck, then the black gloves on his hands. “And… we’re good!”

“How about me?” Aoba asked. They were wearing clothes from the same brand; the same style, the same mood. But he needed to ask, just in case.

“Aoba-san is as fine as always!” the man smiled. “C’mon!”

“He has a point,” Noiz smirked at Aoba’s direction while they walked towards the set, then earning himself a prod on the ribs.

Standing in front of big cameras, under bright lights, with Noiz, gave him an impulsive feel as if he was being placed in an illusion. Before he got into this industry, he’d witnessed Noiz on TV, on billboards, on the big screen. Noiz was literally _everywhere_. He was desirable, he was a persona too far to be reached. Even touching him made him feel guilty. But now, Noiz’s hand was on his waist, his face just an inch away from Aoba’s face, his gaze penetratingly stunning as he stroke his first pose at the camera. There was no way Aoba could look away from him. The Noiz before him now was so… _gorgeous_ that he couldn’t help but stare. He was so different from the suggestive, even emotionless Noiz he’d come to know across time. And when Noiz returned his gaze, he found himself sucked deep into his eyes, his emotions overflowed from beneath his chest before he let out a light cough and posed his most natural stance, with a smile adorning his features and body gestures spelling of nothing but sincerity.

The world may not know who Noiz really was. All they could see was perhaps the ‘Cold Prince’ brand they were so used to call him. But for Aoba, he was more than that. Much, much more than that. And even if the world would never recognize Noiz for who he really was, he knew that it didn’t matter for Noiz after all.

Because at the end of the day, what mattered to Noiz was how _Aoba_ looked at him.

And he knew that the fact that Aoba had hung this very first duet photo of theirs in his room meant a lot more than him crowning the most famous celebrity crown in the nation now.

Because he’d crowned the number one place in the heart of the person who meant the world to him.

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> I'll have an extra story up but I cannot guarantee when it'll be released _(:3/L  
> The extra story will cover the time when Aoba first met Noiz and what happened after this.
> 
> Thank you so much for being so patient with me <3


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